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Legan chess

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abcdefgh
8
a8 black king
b8 black knight
c8 black bishop
d8 black rook
e8 black pawn
a7 black bishop
b7 black queen
c7 black pawn
d7 black pawn
a6 black knight
b6 black pawn
c6 black pawn
a5 black rook
b5 black pawn
d5 black pawn
h5 white pawn
a4 black pawn
e4 white pawn
g4 white pawn
h4 white rook
f3 white pawn
g3 white pawn
h3 white knight
e2 white pawn
f2 white pawn
g2 white queen
h2 white bishop
d1 white pawn
e1 white rook
f1 white bishop
g1 white knight
h1 white king
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Legan chess starting position

Legan chess (or Legan's game) is a chess variant invented by L. Legan in 1913.[1] It differs from standard chess by the starting position as well as by pawn movements.

Rules

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The starting setup is illustrated. The game can be also played with the board rotated by 45° clockwise to make pawn movements easier to understand. There is no castling and no en passant. Otherwise, the rules of chess apply.

Pawn movement

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abcdefgh
8
b6 black pawn
c6 black cross
b5 black cross
c5 black circle
e4 white circle
f4 black cross
e3 black cross
f3 white pawn
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Pawn movements in Legan chess

Pawns move one square diagonally forward: White from right to left; Black left to right. They capture orthogonally in direction of movements (see diagram). The white pawn on f3 can move to e4 and capture on e3 and f4. The black pawn on b6 can move to c5 and capture on b5 and c6.

Pawn promotion

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abcdefgh
8
a8 white circle
b8 white circle
c8 white circle
d8 white circle
e8 black pawn
a7 white circle
c7 black pawn
d7 black pawn
a6 white circle
b6 black pawn
c6 black pawn
a5 white circle
b5 black pawn
d5 black pawn
h5 white pawn
a4 black pawn
e4 white pawn
g4 white pawn
h4 black circle
f3 white pawn
g3 white pawn
h3 black circle
e2 white pawn
f2 white pawn
h2 black circle
d1 white pawn
e1 black circle
f1 black circle
g1 black circle
h1 black circle
8
77
66
55
44
33
22
11
abcdefgh
Pawn promotion in Legan chess

Pawns promote on squares occupied in the initial position by the opponent's king, bishops, knights, and rooks. For example, white pawns promote on squares a5–a8–d8 (marked with white dots); black pawns on e1–h1–h4 (marked with black dots). Note that the pawns that start on d1, h5, a4 and e8 cannot promote without moving toward the center of the board via capturing.

References

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Bibliography

  • Pritchard, D. B. (1994). "Legan's Game". The Encyclopedia of Chess Variants. Games & Puzzles Publications. p. 172. ISBN 0-9524142-0-1.
  • Pritchard, D. B. (2007). "Legan's Game". In Beasley, John (ed.). The Classified Encyclopedia of Chess Variants. John Beasley. ISBN 978-0-9555168-0-1.